Progress Index

Measuring Shared Prosperity in Washington State

Individuals, children, families, businesses, and communities all benefit from state investments in high-quality education, a clean environment, economic development, a healthy workforce, and a good quality of life. Without these investments, social and economic progress is impossible.

The Progress Index is a tool that measures Washington state's progress in several key areas. It shows how budget and policy decisions affect shared prosperity. And it offers strategies that policymakers can adopt to ensure that our state is moving in the right direction.

In addition to informing policymakers, the extensive data and analysis presented in the Index can also be used to start important conversations, mobilize communities, and inspire change. Armed with a better understanding of the work that needs to be done, we can all take steps to become a state where everyone can share in prosperity.

Or to go directly to an individual section of the Index, click on the links below. Each section offers analysis about a critical progress area for Washington state:

Washington state should have an economy in which all Washingtonians can meet their basic needs and have opportunities to remain stable during a personal crisis or economic downturn. Read more.

Washington state should have a world-class system for all students, with high-quality teachers, curriculum, and enrichment activities throughout early learning, K-12, and higher education. Read more.

Washington state should be a society in which everyone has the opportunity to live a healthy and productive life, with affordable options for health care and the opportunity to live in an environment with clean air, water, and land. Read more.

Washington state should offer a qualify of life in which residents have the freedom to live, work, and play; and our state government should foster trust by making decisions out in the open. Read more.

Washington state should offer an abundance of high-quality, living wage jobs that support a strong middle class and that retain and attract the best talent and businesses to our state. Read more.

Washington state should have a stable, dependable, and equitable tax system that ensures there are adequate resources to invest in equal opportunities for our children, families, businesses, and communities. Read more.

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Watch the Budget Matters Plenary

View the Budget Matters 2016 conference plenary panel, "What's at Stake in the 2017-2019 Budget: Funding McCleary and Beyond," on TVW. Moderated by Ann Dornfeld of KUOW with a budget overview by our own Andy Nicholas, the panel features Nathan Gibbs-Bowling, the 2016 Washington State Teacher of the Year; Lew Moore of the Washington Research Council; Roxana Norouzi of OneAmerica; and Sen. Christine Rolfes. The plenary starts after a brief intro by Executive Director Misha Werschkul and an intro video by Gov. Inslee.

Our Legislative Agenda

Our agenda for the 2015-2017 biennium calls for an equitable, sustainable revenue system in addition to state investments that: promote a world-class education system; sustain a strong middle class; produce living-wage jobs, and ensure that all Washingtonians have equal opportunity to get ahead.

Testimonies in Olympia

We testified in support of a number of important bills during the 2016 legislative session. Take a look:

Our testimony (at the 23:23 minute mark) on the House Bill that would take a two-generation approach to preventing poverty

Our testimony (at the 1:54:09 mark) on the House bill focused on aerospace-related tax breaks